Emily McEwan-Fujita
Based on research in Scotland and Nova Scotia, the papers in this collection focus on a number of interconnected themes, including language ideologies and affective stances about what it means to be a Gaelic speaker, media discourses of Gaelic language death and revitalization, the intersection of neoliberalism and minority language revitalization, the theoretical frameworks of Reversing Language Shift (RLS) and communities of practice as they apply to Gaelic language revitalization efforts, and issues of power and knowledge in research and representation of Gaelic communities. Essays include the author’s previously published articles and book chapters spanning the period 2005–2013, as well as three previously unpublished papers. Suitable for undergraduate and graduate-level courses in linguistic anthropology, sociolinguistics, Celtic studies, and education.“I’m glad that a new volume strong on Gaelic survival, persistence, and revitalization is now on offer, with due emphasis on social setting and social factors. Congratulations [to the author] on bringing such a strong body of work out in a form where it can be appreciated as a whole.” —Dr. Nancy C. Dorian, Professor Emerita of Linguistics, Bryn Mawr College TABLE OF CONTENTSIntroduction xiPart 1: Knowledge and Representation 11 Sociolinguistic ethnography of Gaelic communities 32 Research and representation: Gaelic and Uist 43Part 2: Discourses of Death and Revitalization 593 Discourses of death and denigration: Ethnolinguistic differentiation and the ideology of contempt 614 “Gaelic doomed as speakers die out”? The public discourse of Gaelic language death in Scotland 955 Language revitalization discourses as metaculture: Gaelic in Scotland from the 18th to 20th centuries 115Part 3: Neoliberalism and Language Revitalization 1496 Neoliberal discourses of Gaelic language revitalization: The “Gaelic economy” and “rocketing spending” 1517 Neoliberalism and minority language planning in the Highlands of Scotland 179Part 4: Language Ideologies and Affect 1978 Ideology, affect, and socialization in language shift and revitalization: The experiences of adults learning Gaelic in the Western Isles of Scotland 1999 Ideologies and experiences of literacy in interactions between adult Gaelic learners and first-language Gaelic speakers in Scotland 24510 Working at “9 to 5” Gaelic: Speakers, context, and ideologies of an emerging minority language register 267Part 5: New Speakers and Reversing Language Shift 28511 Gaelic revitalization efforts in Nova Scotia: Reversing Language Shift (RLS) in the 21st century 28712 “Ìle ga Bruidhinn”: A community-based Gaelic dialect revitalization proposal 315References 333Index 365 3
